Angela Eagle responds to David Cameron's 'calm down, dear' taunt

Angela Eagle, the shadow chief secretary to the Treasury, says that by saying "calm
down dear" to her, David Cameron had offended 51 per cent of the
nation.

"I don't think any modern man would have expressed himself in that way," she responded.

But asked if she wanted an apology from Mr Cameron, she said: "The Prime Minister is reponsible for what he says in the Commons.

"I think if there is an apology to make, it should be for the dreadful growth figures we have seen today, which demonstrated that the economy has effectively flatlined for six months."

She added: "I have been patronised by better people than the Prime Minister... It is for the Prime Minister to decide whether he expressed himself appropriately in the Commons. It is up to him as to whether he wants to annoy 51% of the population."

Labour's Caroline Flint accused Mr Cameron of using the word "dear" to "put women down", and said she had been on the receiving end of the same tactic from Communities Secretary Eric Pickles in the chamber last December, when he told her to "just get behind the programme then, dear".

In a message on Twitter, the shadow communities secretary said: "PM isn't the only one fond of using 'dear' to put women down. Pickles used the same tactic on me. See Hansard 6.12.10."

Meanwhile, the PM's comment was a hot topic for debate on parenting website Mumsnet, where contributors were split between those seeing it as patronising and those who regarded it as acceptable banter.

One poster, MrsBaldwin, wrote "In my view David Cameron just knocked some gloss off his 'I'm a modern Tory' spin. Is that what he says to SamCam at home?" while another, squeakytoy, asked "Why is it appalling? I would say it to my female and male friends if they were getting hysterical or shouty. It is nothing to do with gender."